Time for fall, and time for fall cooking! Here’s a selection from some of our favorite recipes for food and cocktails that include, you guessed it - cider!

Scroll through to see recipes for:

• Cocktails: Wassail, Fruit Belt Boulevardier, Cider Coast Daquiri, Fall Spritz, Cider Colman
• Food: Cider-Brined Turkey, Michigan Apple Pie, Pulled Pork with Michigan Apple Barbecue Sauce

WASSAIL

Cool days require something warm, and we prefer to have it include cider. Here's our favorite recipe for a Virtue wassail that is our cure-all for chilly temps. 

Ingredients:

Mulling Spices (you can either place these in a cheesecloth bag, or keep them loose):

• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 whole cloves
• 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
• pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 whole allspice
• 1 juniper berry

Cider:

• 4 cups of Virtue Cider
• 2 cups non-alcoholic cider
• a bit of your favorite spirit: whiskey/brandy/rum/etc.

Directions:

1. Heat all ingredients in a saucepan, but take care not to boil. 
2. If you choose to add spirits, be sure to do so with the saucepan off the heat source, and very carefully. 
3. Ladle around the spices and serve the mulled cider in your favorite mug and garnish with apple slices.

FRUIT BELT BOULEVARDIER

Named in honor of our orchard-heavy region of Southwest Michigan and inspired by our love of apertifs. This is our version of a Boulevardier with cider. Enjoy flavors from the Fruit Belt!

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. Virtue Cider Brut
• 4 oz. rye whiskey
• 2 oz. Campari
• 2 oz. sweet vermouth
• Garnish: 2 orange twists

Directions:

1. Add ice to mixing glass. 
2. Add Cider, rye, Campari, and vermouth. Stir. 
3. Strain into a coupe. 
4. Garnish with an orange twist and serve immediately.

CIDER COAST DAQUIRI

Not like the frozen version at all! This classic cocktail is a showcase of rum and fall-friendly dry cider. Named for our beachfront of Lake Michigan, where our orchards are. Here’s the Cider Coast Daquiri.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz. white rum
• 1/2 tsp. superfine sugar
• 1 oz. Virtue Cider Brut

Directions:

1. Squeeze the lime into your shaker, stir in the sugar, and then add the rum. Shake well with cracked ice, then strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

FALL SPRITZ

Keep in the spirit of spritz all season long with a cider spritz! Works great with a dry cider like our Michigan Brut. Add your favorite aperitif and some sparkling water to make a refreshing, sessionable cocktail great for fall gatherings.

Ingredients:

• 3 oz. Virtue Cider Brut 
• 1 oz. aperitif 
• 2 oz. sparkling water 

Directions:

1. Fill a highball glass 1/4 full with ice cubes. 
2. Layer the aperitif, cider, and sparkling water in that order over ice. 
3. Garnish with orange slice and paper straw.

CIDER COLMAN

This one’s simple! Rim a tall pint glass with a 3:1 cinnamon and sugar mix. Fill glass with Virtue Cider.

A Cider Colman is a little sweet and a little spicy, like your favorite bartender or the end of Summer. It’s perfect for Cider Season.

CIDER-BRINED TURKEY

Ingredients:

• Brine
• 2 cans Virtue Cider
• ½ quart apple cider
• 1 medium onion
• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• ¼ cups Worcestershire sauce
• 8 black peppercorns
• 1/4 bunch parsley
• 4 bay leaves

For the turkey:

• One 10-12-pound turkey
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Preparation:

1. A Virtue Cider, soft cider, kosher salt, bay leaves, onion, Worcestershire sauce, peppercorns, and parsley in a large brining bag or in a large stock pot, . Place turkey in brine and cover with water. Refrigerate overnight.  
2. Preheat oven to 450°F and align a rack in the lower third of the oven.
3. Remove turkey from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper and place into the oven. Check on the turkey after 40 minutes and tent with foil if getting too dark. Roast until the turkey reaches 160˚F, about an hour and a half. Set aside to rest.

APPLE PIE
Inspired by our Michigan Apple pie collaboration with Bang! Bang! Pie! 

Pastry Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp Sugar
• 2 ea Sticks Unsalted butter, frozen and grated

Pastry Directions:

1. Put flour, sugar, salt in a food processor and pulse to combine
2. Add butter and process for a few seconds or until small peas begin to form
3. Add Ice water, TB by TB (about 1/4- 1/2 C) through the feed tube while processor is still running until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; Do not process more than 30 seconds
4. Test dough; if crumbly, add a bit more water
5. Divide dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap; flatten into a disk and chill until needed.

Filling Ingredients:

• 12 ea Honeycrisp apples; peeled, cored and sliced
• 4 oz Virtue Cider
• 3/4 cups sugar; plus, additional for pie top
• 1 ea lemon, zest and juice
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, ground
• 1/2 Tsp nutmeg, ground
• 1/8 Tsp cloves, ground
• 2 TB unsalted Butter
• 1 ea egg, beaten with 1/2 TB Water (egg wash)
• 2 TB powdered tapioca, unflavored
• 2 TB all-purpose flour

Topping Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 TB granulated sugar

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine apples, sugar, lemon zest/juice, cider, spices, tapioca and flour. Toss well.
2. Allow filling to rest for 20-30 minutes before adding to pie pan
3. Assembly:
4. Preheat oven to 375 F
5. On lightly floured surface, roll out pastry into two 1/8" thick circles to a 12" diameter.
6. Add one pastry circle to the pie plate. Wrap and chill the other one (or make another pie!)
7. Pour apple filling over pie crust in pie plate, mounding apples toward center.
8. For the topping: In medium bowl, use pastry blender or fingers to mix butter, 1 cup flour and the brown sugar until a crumb forms. Sprinkle evenly over top of pie. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon granulated sugar on top.
9. Bake until crust is brown, and juices are bubbling; about 1 hour; cool on a wire rack before serving.

PULLED PORK WITH LILLIE’S Q X VIRTUE CIDER MICHIGAN APPLE BARBECUE SAUCE

Recipe by Lillie’s Q

Ingredients:

• (1) 6-pound pork butt (bone-in)
• 2 C Lillie’s Q x Virtue Cider Michigan Apple Barbecue Sauce
• 3 oz Lillie’s Q Carolina Dirt BBQ Rub
• 1/2 C apple cider vinegar

 Directions:

1. Clean all fat from outside of the pork butt.
2. Using a pastry brush, brush the pork butt with Lillie’s Q Michigan Apple Barbecue Sauce
3. Sprinkle the pork with Lillie’s Q Carolina Dirt BBQ Rub to cover all sides.
4. Mix apple cider vinegar and Lillie’s Q Michigan Apple Barbecue Sauce together and add to slow cooker.
5. Place seasoned pork butt in slow cooker along with vinegar mixture from above.
6. Cook on high for 6 to 7 hours, until pork is tender (~197 degrees when checked with an internal thermometer).
7. While keeping the pork in the slow cooker, remove the bone and use it as a tool to shred the meat. Preserve the juices in the slow cooker to keep the pork moist.
8. Enjoy on its own or with brioche buns alongside your favorite Lillie’s Q sauce.